Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 14 December 2021

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health

Closure of Owenacurra Centre: Engagement with HSE

Mr. Mark Kane:

It is a fair question being raised by Deputy Ward. Over €420,000 has been provided for ongoing maintenance and upkeep of Owenacurra over the past number of years. That is in response to questions being asked by the members in advance of today's meeting. The point remains and Owenacurra is probably unique relative to a number of other healthcare facilities. I mentioned that the construction is a Roh-fab material and the suppliers of such products speak of it having a 40 or 50 year life. That is the external fabric and structure of the building and it has reached 50 years. We must look at how fundamentally intrinsic some of these building matters are and they may not necessarily be applicable to other methods of construction.